NE RYAN LARSEN: Missing from La Vista, NE - 17 May 2021 - Age 11

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Endangered Missing Advisory issued for Omaha boy​

The Nebraska State Patrol has issued an Endangered Missing Advisory for a boy with autism missing from La Vista, near Omaha.

According to a release, Ryan Larsen, 11, was last seen leaving school Monday at La West Elementary.


‘Ultimate game of hide-and-seek,’ search for missing La Vista child continues​

The Nebraska State Patrol issues an Endangered Missing Advisory for a La Vista boy.

Ryan Larsen was last known to be in the area of 78th Street and Terry Drive in La Vista around 12:00 pm on Monday.

Authorities say Ryan has autism, is an 11-year-old white male, 5′ 8″, about 125 lbs with brown hair and hazel eyes. Ryan was wearing a black jacket, blue jeans, an Old Navy shirt, and had a polka-dotted umbrella.


“We have no reason to suspect anything other than he walked away,” commented a spokesperson for the La Vista Police Department. “Right now we are just looking for a little boy who is playing the ultimate game of hide-and-seek.”

The official explained that La Vista police has dealt with Larsen before.

“He does like to hide he does like to get away, he likes to hide in small places.”

Larsen is a high-functioning child on the autism spectrum, who police say is non-verbal with anyone he is uncomfortable around. They believe he was in between classes when he slipped away from the school.

 
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Boy's disappearance drives plan to install cameras at Papillion La Vista elementaries​

The disappearance of a La Vista student last spring is driving a plan to install surveillance cameras at 16 elementary schools in Papillion La Vista Community Schools.

Under the district’s estimated $900,000 project, cameras would be installed to capture video both inside and outside the schools. The cameras would watch entrances and exits, driveways, drop-off and pick-up areas, playgrounds, the office area, cafeterias and high-traffic corridors.

District officials said Ryan’s disappearance prompted the push to improve surveillance at the schools.

“They heard from parents and staff and law enforcement at that particular time that you really should have cameras in your schools,” said Brett Richards, the school district’s assistant superintendent for business services.

If school board members authorize the purchase, officials aim to award a contract in March and complete the installation by the end of the year, with most work done over the summer.

Federal COVID-19 relief money would cover $500,000 of the cost, with the rest coming from the district.
 
Kudos to them for listening. I think like apartment complexes, schools and some other places resist not just for budget but because like everything nowadays if something does happen there, it can bring something down on the school for instance...

This case is one that bothers me... I'm just not convinced the bit of info is correct about him leaving school and such... Just another one where something doesn't sit right.

If people want better cameras then apparently they don't have what people feel was adequate just even on school grounds... Imo.
 

Online mom searching for Ryan Larsen instrumental in new billboard, bus bench campaign​

Driving westbound on Interstate 80, you can't miss it near 99th street — a bright billboard with Ryan Larsen's picture, reminding drivers the autistic boy is still missing.

"I think it's awesome. The more the word gets out, the more the word continues to stay out and he isn't forgotten," La Vista Police Chief Bob Lausten said.

"A lot of us haven't forgotten about Ryan," Lisa Meridith said. "I can say I think of him every day."

https://www.ketv.com/article/from-m...months-since-ryan-larsen-disappeared/38258427
Soon after, the national non-profit A Voice for the Voiceless and an online sleuth group, True Crime Sisters, started making their own videos and flyers.

"You communicate, you're on social media and say, 'What can I do?' and it just becomes a ripple effect and everybody does what they can, and at this point, we've got billboards and awareness," founder Whitney Sich said.

Theresa Rivera took it to another level. During a Google search, she found Lamar Advertising and Omaha Bus Benches, who donated the space.

"They were familiar with Ryan's story and they wanted to help," Rivera said.

Lausten said no tips have come in. Tuesday, they searched a field one mile from Ryan's home and found nothing. He calls this an active case. Lausten hopes the billboard and bus benches move someone to come forward with information.

"We need closure on this, closure for the family, closure for the community and in respect of Ryan, we need to find where he is at," Lausten said.

"I'm hoping it continues to bring visibility and jogs someone's memory," Rivera said. "I just hope it helps in some way to find him."


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The search for Ryan Larsen of La Vista continues as one-year mark of disappearance nears
Approaching the one-year mark since the disappearance of now 12-year-old Ryan Larsen and investigators remain stumped.

"We've kind of hit a wall at times," said La Vista Police Chief Bob Lausten.


In the days that followed, people turned out in large numbers combing through a number of different places. A recent search effort brought La Vista police and Sarpy County rescue crews to a field near 66th and Harrison Streets. That's not far from Seymour Smith Park.

"Going over areas we had searched before. We're trying to leave no stone unturned."

Drivers at an intersection by the Ralston city line are also reminded of Ryan's disappearance through a bus bench.

"It's heartwarming for us to know that the public hasn't forgotten."

"If you see any little thing you might think is helpful, let someone know," said Ryan Wedekind.


Back in La Vista, Chief Lausten says investigators remain committed to Ryan's case every day.

"This one is important to us," said Chief Lausten.

A billboard about Ryan has also been set up in Omaha. Like the bus bench, it's designed to catch the attention of passersby.
 

'Somebody knows something,' La Vista police chief needs evidence to find missing Ryan Larsen​

When you walk into the La Vista Police Department, one of the first things you'll see is Ryan Larsen's picture.

"It's been a year and the case is still under investigation," said Chief Bob Lausten.

"We've looked everywhere."

Lausten says his department knew Ryan.

They found the boy with autism safe, a half dozen other times, when he'd walked out of La Vista West Elementary.

This time, on May 17, 2021, something went wrong.


Nine months ago, investigators asked Google for help, getting search warrants for all phone activity in that area on that day.

Lausten said social media, Google searches and texts are just starting to come in.

"We've been working with them to narrow that large batch of information down but our timeline and their timeline are two different timelines," he said.

The first few hours of a missing child investigation are key and Lausten said some people muddied the search.

"We've had people that haven't been totally forthcoming with us regarding information," he said. "We've had people that have lied to us about information, so it's been frustrating."


Searchers are going back to Walnut Creek Recreation Area Tuesday, another location Ryan liked to visit. They will use an underwater drone and special sonar equipment.

Last summer, they lowered the water level and cadaver dogs detected human decay but police don't know if that's Ryan's scent.

"With the water clearing up, we just want to take another look," he said. "Something's in there."

The chief has a message to those who know what happened to Ryan. He said it's time for someone to do the right thing.

"This is about him. This isn't about someone who may have information that is scared and that is thinking they will get in trouble," he said. "Somebody knows something and somebody needs to tell us."
 

'Somebody knows something,' La Vista police chief needs evidence to find missing Ryan Larsen​

When you walk into the La Vista Police Department, one of the first things you'll see is Ryan Larsen's picture.

"It's been a year and the case is still under investigation," said Chief Bob Lausten.

"We've looked everywhere."

Lausten says his department knew Ryan.

They found the boy with autism safe, a half dozen other times, when he'd walked out of La Vista West Elementary.

This time, on May 17, 2021, something went wrong.


Nine months ago, investigators asked Google for help, getting search warrants for all phone activity in that area on that day.

Lausten said social media, Google searches and texts are just starting to come in.

"We've been working with them to narrow that large batch of information down but our timeline and their timeline are two different timelines," he said.

The first few hours of a missing child investigation are key and Lausten said some people muddied the search.

"We've had people that haven't been totally forthcoming with us regarding information," he said. "We've had people that have lied to us about information, so it's been frustrating."


Searchers are going back to Walnut Creek Recreation Area Tuesday, another location Ryan liked to visit. They will use an underwater drone and special sonar equipment.

Last summer, they lowered the water level and cadaver dogs detected human decay but police don't know if that's Ryan's scent.

"With the water clearing up, we just want to take another look," he said. "Something's in there."

The chief has a message to those who know what happened to Ryan. He said it's time for someone to do the right thing.

"This is about him. This isn't about someone who may have information that is scared and that is thinking they will get in trouble," he said. "Somebody knows something and somebody needs to tell us."
So now we have people muddying the search and lying. This one from the start sounded as if it was simply a child with autism that went missing but I never thought it sat right. Even here he has taken off from school before it says and yet no one seemed to be watching if he was known to do so, no cameras, etc. and then they stated looking in areas so far away that he would have had to travel/walk, too far really etc. if I recall.

I think what bothers me in cases like this (a child with autism) is it seems so easily jumped to that of course they wandered off, hide, are in water, etc. because it is not an unlikely thing for them to do BUT people also know such children/people are vulnerable and can be taken advantage of easily (and people who pick on or take advantage of others abound in this world) and they also often have parents or caregivers who are naturally quite stressed sometimes.

I don't think there is really any hope here that this child is alive but I pray they do find him and find answers.
 

One year later: Searchers return to Walnut Creek to look for missing autistic La Vista boy​

Law enforcement is focusing on Walnut Creek Recreation Area in the search for Ryan Larsen, 12. La Vista police Chief Ryan Larsen said this is the only place where they have something to go on. He said a cadaver dog smelled human remains last year.

The Sarpy County Search and Rescue team spent a few hours on the water in a boat Tuesday morning.

"We have some new equipment available to us that Sarpy County has, so they wanted to put that in the lake and the lake is a lot clearer now than it was the last time we were out there," Lausten said.

This day has more meaning though, as Larsen vanished one year ago. He walked out of his school, La Vista West Elementary around 11:45 a.m. He was seen two hours later at his apartment complex near 84th and Harrison Streets and hasn't been seen since.

"We are trying to find a young man that's out there somewhere," Lausten said.

Volunteer Patrick Morrissey and his specially-trained cadaver dog, Prize, are back at it again too. Morrissey said Prize was interested in an area last year and they went back today.

"It's been a year but he's not interested there," Morrissey said.

Prize can tell the difference between human and animal remains. But the scent that got him excited last year isn't as strong 12 months later.

"Water is a different story because water is always moving so the scent is moving away from the land," he said. "Water is a moving target."

Prize even sniffed out the shore and land in that area.

But he didn't find anything significant.

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A year after La Vista boy's disappearance, mother holds onto hope her son is alive​

Super sweet. Super helpful. A big imagination. A bigger heart.

That is how Tammi Larsen describes her youngest child and only son. Ryan was the last of her four children still at home. Her youngest daughter had just graduated from high school and moved to a community two hours away. Her two older daughters also were grown and starting their own families. His father had never been part of his life.

Tammi Larsen said Ryan was always looking for ways to help. For example, if the carts were a mess in a grocery store parking lot, he would arrange them and put them together.

Ryan’s reward for doing well at school? Being allowed to help the janitor.

“He would get to help the janitor do different projects,” his mother said. “Take out the trash, go help in the lunchroom, picking up stuff. That was the reward he chose — to help the janitor.”

He was creative and liked building things with Legos, cardboard and tape, Larsen said.

“He is the kindest little boy,” said Christy Latham, the oldest of Ryan’s three sisters.

Ryan’s autism affected the way he communicated and interacted with others. It made him prone to anxiety and, when stressed — as his mother believes he was on the day he disappeared — he coped by walking away. He also has Tourette syndrome — a condition of the nervous system — and epilepsy, so he was on a range of medications.

His sister, Taylor Larsen, wrote on Facebook soon after her brother’s disappearance that his autism made him who he is.

“At first he is shy, but once you get to know him, he won’t stop talking. The media is saying he suffers from autism, but I think that is what makes him who he is,” she wrote. “I envy him for being able to ignore what other people think ... He is ambitious and has overcome great things ... Ryan is deeply loved by our family and friends.”

Tammi Larsen is convinced her son is alive and she sees hope in the fact that her son hasn’t been found.

“I tell the girls every day that: ‘Every day we don’t get that phone call is one more chance we have of getting him back.’ I still believe he’s out there somewhere. We just have to find him.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“He was actually very happy,” Tammi Larsen said. “One of the things we’d been working on was him getting dressed by himself, and it was a pretty successful morning. I dropped him off (at school) and everything seemed to be OK.”

It was a Monday. The Omaha area was in the midst of a wet spell, so Larsen grabbed an umbrella for Ryan as they left their apartment.

The umbrella later would be the only physical evidence that appears to place Ryan back at the family’s apartment building after he left his grade school.

A sixth grader, Ryan attended La Vista West Elementary School, the same school his mother had attended as a little girl. The school was about a five-minute walk from the apartment where he and his mother lived, and about a 10-minute walk from his grandmother’s home.

Officials with the Papillion La Vista Community Schools have declined to talk about what happened because of a possible lawsuit by the Larsen family.

Tammi Larsen provided the following account of what she said she has been told about that day at school:

Ryan had been struggling with a math problem that morning and had gotten frustrated to the point that he needed to be alone to settle down.

In accordance with the individual educational program his mother and the school had agreed to, Ryan went to a separate room to be by himself but under the supervision of an adult. That adult stayed with him until needing to leave. The adult’s replacement was late, and it was during this unsupervised time that Ryan left.

Ryan’s mother said she has been told he was discovered missing from that room between 11:45 a.m. and 11:55 a.m.

Lausten said police records indicate Ryan last was seen between 11:55 a.m. and 12:05 p.m. as he walked past the elementary school office with his umbrella. As he did so, the school secretary called out to Ryan to say that she would hold his umbrella for him, Lausten said. But Ryan kept walking, he said.

According to the time stamp on Larsen’s voice mail, she said she was notified by the school at 12:27 p.m. that her son was missing.

According to Lausten, the school called 911 to report him missing at about 12:29 p.m. and police arrived there at 12:32 p.m.


MUCH MORE AT LINK!
 

Family, friends release balloons to celebrate missing La Vista boy’s birthday​

Wednesday night, family and friends gathered in La Vista to celebrate a somber day, Ryan Larsen’s 13th birthday.

Dozens of colorful balloons were released as the family marked Ryan’s second birthday since he went missing in May 2021 at the age of 11.


Family members say they just want Ryan, wherever he is, to know that he is loved and they’re still hoping for his safe return.

Community members were invited to sign a poster, which will be hung in Ryan’s room.
 

Mother of missing La Vista boy asks for him to be declared dead​

The mother of Ryan Larsen, the La Vista boy who has been missing since May 2021, has filed a petition in court to have her son declared legally dead.

Tammi Larsen filed the petition earlier this month in Sarpy County Court. The petition also seeks to hold the Papillion-La Vista school district accountable for Larsen’s disappearance.

Ryan, who was 11 at the time, was seen leaving La Vista Elementary on May 17, 2021.

The petition argues that because Ryan has not been seen since that day, he is presumably dead. Ryan is autistic and has other health problems that would have made it difficult for him to have survived on his own.

“Unless Ryan Larsen is under the supervision of a suitable caretaker, his medical conditions prevent him from exercising the necessary self-care to sustain his own life,” the petition states.


The petition also states that Larsen intends to make a claim against the school district for its alleged negligence on the day Ryan went missing.

The petition alleges that staff members at La Vista Elementary saw Ryan leave that day but did nothing to stop him or bring him back to the school.

A hearing is set for Feb. 21 in Sarpy County, according to court documents.
 

Friday, February 17th 2023, 11:25 PM CST
Updated: Saturday, February 18th 2023, 12:13 AM CST
By Joe Jordan

Two new legal developments in the case of a La Vista woman who wants her missing son declared dead.

12-year-old Ryan Larsen, who has autism, was last seen 21 months ago, on May 17, 2021, leaving his La Vista school around lunch time, according to authorities.

His mother, Tammi Larsen, is asking a Sarpy County judge to appoint her in charge of her son’s affairs and rule him no longer missing.

With a court hearing scheduled for Tuesday, LaVista Police Chief Bob Lausten, who has been subpoenaed by the mom to testify, is now asking the judge to quash the subpoena.


On Friday, Lausten told the court, the Ryan Larsen case is an “ongoing search and criminal investigation”, and his testimony should not be allowed because it might make public specific confidential information, jeopardizing the investigation which includes federal, state and local law enforcement. If the subpoena isn't quashed Lausten wants the court to limit the scope of his testimony.

As of late Friday the judge had not ruled on Lausten’s request, according to on-line court records.
 
Court hears case for family of missing Papillion boy
In a hearing lasting more than 30 minutes, attorneys representing the mother of missing Papillion boy Ryan Larsen presented their case for why he should be declared "presumed dead".

During Tuesday's hearing, she testified that her son was diagnosed with autism, Tourette syndrome and epilepsy, and that he could not be left unattended because he lacked impulse control. In addition to Ryan having a tendency to wander off and hide, she said he couldn’t tread water.

May 17 will mark two years since the then-11-year-old disappeared after leaving La Vista West Elementary School around lunch time.

State law requires a person to be missing for five years before they can be declared dead. The family's attorneys said they want to hold Papillion-La Vista Public Schools accountable for Ryan's disappearance and that they think the statute of limitations to make a claim against the school district is coming up.

"In order for the Larsen family to pursue their legal rights against the school district for the negligence of the school district, we think it's a necessary step to go through this proceeding," Sean Conway said.


They withdrew a petition to subpoena La Vista Police Chief Bob Lausten to testify at the hearing. Lausten had been fighting the subpoena.

The family's attorneys said the judge will take what they presented during the hearing under advisement.

Despite the bid to declare Ryan "presumed dead", they said the family is always going to hold out hope that he will be found.
 

Friday, April 28th 2023, 8:40 AM CDT
By WOWT Channel 6
PAPILLION, Neb. (WOWT) - A judge has thrown out a petition that sought to have missing 11-year-old Ryan Larsen presumed dead.

<snip>
According to court documents, Thursday, a judge denied Tammi Larsen’s petition to have her son Ryan declared legally dead.

The burden of proof was on Tammi to show that it’s more likely Ryan died around May 17, 2021, than he survived. The judge says there wasn’t enough evidence to conclude that.

If the petition was approved, it would have allowed Tammi Larsen to receive a death certificate so she could presumably take legal action against the Papillion-La Vista School District.
 
His mother trying very hard to declare him legally dead not quite 2 years later seems suspicious to me. Why?. So the investigation is closed?. No body no crime so far, So hurry the process?. I didn't suspect her. But with this I do.
 
His mother trying very hard to declare him legally dead not quite 2 years later seems suspicious to me. Why?. So the investigation is closed?. No body no crime so far, So hurry the process?. I didn't suspect her. But with this I do.
per article

If the petition was approved, it would have allowed Tammi Larsen to receive a death certificate so she could presumably take legal action against the Papillion-La Vista School District.
 
Yeah. With the 5 yrs. Filing negligence can't expire this soon. It just seems rushed when they have not found him or his body.
 

Family of Ryan Larsen plans to move forward on suing school district despite losing petition​

The family of missing 11-year-old Ryan Larsen failed to have him presumed dead with a petition, but plans to continue with action against the Papillion-La Vista School District.

According to the family’s attorney Sean Conway, they do not believe the judge’s decision will harm their case against the school district.

Conway says they still plan on filing suit for the “numerous state and federal law violations that school district committed when they failed to watch over Ryan Larsen when he was in their control.”

The judge threw out the family’s petition on the basis that there wasn’t enough proof that Ryan was dead.

“The family wanted closure and even though the court couldn’t provide it we believe we have federal remedies to hold the district accountable.”
 

The mother of a La Vista boy who went missing from his elementary school in 2021 has filed a civil lawsuit alleging that the Papillion La Vista Community School District was negligent in supervising her son.

<snip>

The lawsuit filed in federal court Friday by Ryan's mother, Tammi Larsen, alleges that the Papillion La Vista Community School District was negligent in supervising Ryan and violated multiple federal laws meant to protect students with disabilities.

According to the lawsuit, Ryan began attending La Vista West Elementary as a kindergartener in 2014. He had already been diagnosed with a seizure disorder prior to starting school, and in the coming years, he would receive additional diagnoses of autism spectrum disorder and Tourette's syndrome.

The lawsuit describes Ryan's learning, social and communication skills as "substantially delayed," and he struggled to communicate his needs to adults. As a result, he was placed on an individualized education plan, or IEP, which was regularly updated by his teachers and special education professionals.
Ryan's IEP included information about his tendency to run away from school. According to the lawsuit, "the (district) knew that Ryan needed to be supervised at all times" because of his documented history of running away from the building.

In the two weeks before his disappearance, Ryan ran away from school twice. Despite this, according to the complaint, he was left alone and unsupervised in a classroom at the elementary school on the day of his disappearance.

Tammi Larsen said she was told by the district that Ryan had been struggling with a math problem and was frustrated to the point that he needed to be alone to settle down. In accordance with his IEP, Ryan was sent to a room to be by himself under the supervision of an adult.

An adult was initially in the room with Ryan but left at some point. A replacement was scheduled to take over, but that person was late. Sometime before 12:05 p.m., Ryan left the classroom and walked out the school's front doors in the middle of the day.

La Vista police later said that the school secretary saw Ryan leave and called out to him, but Ryan continued walking. The lawsuit alleges that no attempts were made to prevent him from leaving or to immediately find and return him to school after his absence was discovered.
 

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